New Player Index

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New Player Index

This page serves as an entry point for players who are new to EVE Online. It gives a very brief overview of the most important concepts for new players, with links to more detailed pages about the core aspects of EVE.

Complementary pages:

Star systems

Main articles: Topology, Navigation

The EVE Online universe is composed of about 8000 star systems, connected by stargates and wormholes. Ships can travel within star systems (using sub-lightspeed or warp-speed propulsion), and jump between star systems (through stargates and wormholes), but they cannot travel to any arbitrary point in space between star systems. The in-game star map helps players to navigate both inside and between star systems.

Each star system is unique, and may contain (amongst others):

Systems have a security level, which gives an indication of how hazardous a system is, and what activities are permitted there.

Overview

Main article: Overview

The overview window is a filtered list of every object in the vicinity of your ship, and is a vital tool for navigating through space. Learning how to set it up and use it properly is one of the most valuable skills for a new player to learn.

Ships

Main article: Ship

When in space, player characters are housed in one-person pods called capsules, which can fly through space (but not do much else) on their own, or which can attach themselves to larger ships (in which case the player will be piloting the ship directly). Ships are the main tools through which players interact (be it travelling, fighting, transporting, supporting, and much more) with the universe of EVE Online. There are over three hundred different types of ship in EVE, ranging from small and nimble frigates to enormous, lumbering titans; each ship type has strengths and weaknesses. Furthermore, moduless and rigs can be fitted to ships to give them additional capabilities or change their characteristics.

When a ship is destroyed, the player's capsule is automatically ejected and, assuming it isn't also destroyed by the attackers, can fly away. Of the things the ship was carrying (modules, cargo...), about half are destroyed and the other half will be left floating in space for anyone to pick up.

Combat

Main article: Combat Primer for Complete Beginners

Combat is conducted over a range of kilometers in a fully three-dimensional environment. This means that the relative position and motion of the target ship (as well as the characteristics and capabilities of the two ships) play an important role in combat.

Combat ships can be fitted with different weapon systems, the most prevalent of which are:

  • Energy, hybrid or projectile turrets, which fire lasers or solid projectiles
  • Missile launchers, which fire guided missiles
  • Drones, which are small semi-autonomous spaceships

Combat is sometimes differentiated by whether one is fighting NPC-controlled ships (PvE) or player-controlled ships (PvP). Players can fight battles by themselves, or they may group up with other players to form fleets, with potentially hundreds of players acting together.

PvP

Main article: Annotated Index to PvP

One of the defining aspects of EVE is its emphasis on player-versus-player (PvP) combat. Unlike in some other MMO-type games, you can attack or be attacked by other players almost anywhere and any time you're in space; only when your ship is docked inside an NPC-controlled station are you completely safe (but playing a spaceship game without ever going out into space isn't much fun).

In star systems with a high security level, CONCORD (the NPC-controlled "police") punishes anyone who breaks the law (for instance, attacking another player without due cause) by destroying their ship - but not necessarily before they've destroyed their target. This is referred to as suicide ganking. The lower the security level, the slower the CONCORD response - until it stops altogether in systems with a security level of 0.5 or below (referred to as low-sec), where free-for-all combat becomes more prevalent.

Scams

Main article: Scams in EVE Online

PvP in EVE extends beyond fighting in ships, notably into scamming unsuspecting victims to steal their resources or items. With a few exceptions, scamming is allowed in EVE, so pilots should always beware of deals that look too good to be true.

Skills

Main article: Skills and Learning

Skills in EVE govern the abilities of your character, such as what ships you can fly, what modules you can use, and how well they perform. Skills are trained in real time (even when you are not logged into the game), and while the first few levels of the beginning skills can be trained in minutes and hours, the later levels of the advanced skills can take a month or more to train. Skills are cumulative and, given enough time, any character can potentially learn any skill.

Industry

Manufacturing

Main articles: Industry Overview, Manufacturing

Nearly all ships, modules and items (and even some space stations) in EVE were constructed by players. Manufacturing scales from individuals making ammunition for their weapons, to large groups of players working together for months to build a Citadel space station or a Supercapital ship. The raw materials for manufacturing come from (amongst other) players mining asteroids in space, extracting resources from planets, and salvaging destroyed ships.

Buying and selling

Main article: Trading

Players can buy and sell items and ships in stations, using the in-game currency ISK. With a few exceptions, the market is entirely player-run, with players manufacturing the items for sale, and buyers and sellers together determining the price through market forces. Markets are local - you can only sell something that you currently have stored in that station, and the buyer must pick it up in the same station - so there is a significant demand for hauling goods around the universe. There are even a non-trivial number of players who spend most (or even all) of their time buying and selling items to make a profit.

PLEX

The in-game item PLEX can be used (among other things) to pay for a month's worth of game time. It can be bought for real-world money, as well as bought and sold for in-game money (ISK). This means that it offers players the possibility of either paying for their game subscription with ISK, or obtaining ISK in-game by paying real-world money.

Even though the former offers the tantalising prospect of playing the game "for free", PLEX are very expensive (when paying in ISK), and players should consider how much enjoyment they would derive from the activities necessary to earn sufficient quantities of ISK (which is very challenging to do on a regular basis, even for experienced players).

Careers

Main article: Careers

EVE is a "sandbox"-game, which means that players are actively encouraged to pursue their own interests and goals, rather than following a pre-determined path through the game. There are almost as many ways to play EVE as there are players in EVE, and many activities that are minor diversions in other games can be full-fledged occupations in EVE. Some examples:

  • Mining ore, ice and gas, manufacturing items and ships, transporting them, and/or buying and selling them on the market
  • Completing missions given by NPCs
  • Exploring the galaxy to look for hidden valuables
  • Join (or eventually manage!) a corporation to work together with other players on common goals
  • Look for other players to fight, either free-form or in the more structured setting of Factional Warfare
  • EVE also offers many opportunities for players to engage with the community in unconventional ways, such as by hosting contests, writing third-party applications, running lotteries, or creating out-of-game artwork and fan-fiction.

Corporations

Main article: Corporation

Player-run corporations are groups of players who are working together on mutual goals, similar to "guilds" in other MMO-type games, but with many more possibilities. Corporations can be small or enormous (thousands of players), with a wide variety of goals and structures. Players in corporations have access to corporation resources such as shared hangars, but (most importantly) to a community of (hopefully) like-minded players. A number of corporations (notably EVE University, although there are, of course, others) specialise in teaching new players how to better play EVE.

Clone states

Main article: Clone States

After November 2016, it will be possible to play EVE in two different ways:

  • You can pay no subscription fee, but you will only be able to fly cruiser-sized ships (or smaller) of your character's race, and only be able to use certain modules and train certain skills (precluding you from using, amongst others, advanced ("Tech 2") modules).
  • By paying a montly subscription fee (either in real-world money or by purchasing PLEX with ISK), you can fly any ship and use any module.

Getting help

EVE is a very complex game, with many interlocking mechanics. Fortunately there are many resources (in addition to the EVE University Wiki that you're reading right now) dedicated to helping new players find their feet.

For all players

  • In-game chat channels
    • The official "Newbie Help" chat channel
    • EVE University's main chat channel E-UNI
  • EVE University organises regular classes about many aspects of the game. You can attend a class "live" (where an experienced instructor will teach you, you can participate in practical exercised, and you can ask questions), or listen to class recordings at your leisure. There is a recommended curriculum of classes aimed at new players.

For members of EVE University

In the medium term, joining a corporation is often an excellent way to learn more about the game. EVE University specialises in training and helping new players, anyone can apply to join. Once your application has been accepted, EVE University has a wide range of resources to help players improve, including:


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